2 January 20232 January 2023 Europäischer Grüner Deal: Kommission schlägt Zertifizierung der CO2-Entnahme vor, um zu Klimaneutralität beizutragen Die Europäische Kommission hat heute einen Vorschlag für einen ersten EU-weiten freiwilligen Rahmen zur zuverlässigen Zertifizierung hochwertiger CO2-Entnahmen angenommen
22 December 202220 December 2022 EU agrees new law to kick deforestation out of supply chains EU legislators reached an agreement in the early hours of Tuesday (6 December) to pass a new law guaranteeing that products sold in the EU are not linked to the destruction or degradation of forests
Entwaldungsfreie Lieferketten: EU-Gesetz kommt Die EU-Gesetzgeber haben sich darauf geeinigt, ein neues Gesetz zu verabschieden, das garantiert, dass in der EU verkaufte Produkte nicht mit der Zerstörung oder Schädigung von Wäldern in Zusammenhang stehen
21 December 202215 December 2022 EU Commission launches industry alliance for ‘made in Europe’ solar PV The European Commission on Friday (9 December) officially launched the EU’s solar photovoltaic industry alliance, with the aim of regaining production lost to China and establishing a “Made in Europe” industry
19 December 202214 December 2022 Air Liquide, Fluxys Belgium and Port of Antwerp-Bruges awarded EU funding for building the Antwerp@C CO2 Export Hub The project, named “Antwerp@C CO2 Export Hub”, is set up as an open-access infrastructure to transport, liquefy and load CO2 onto ships for onward permanent offshore storage
15 December 202212 December 2022 Communication on a policy framework for biobased, biodegradable and compostable plastics Questions and Answers that seek to deepen knowledge of these substances and make clear the areas where plastics can actually assist the environment
13 December 20227 December 2022 Proposed new packaging rules acknowledge environmental and climate benefits of compostable plastic packaging Commission misses opportunity to fully embrace necessary shift to biobased feedstock
EU packaging law proposal branded ‘unworkable’ by food industry A new EU packaging law proposal has sparked major concerns among the EU food industry, who warn it is unworkable for food business operators – but NGOs slammed heavy industry lobbying for watering down the proposal
EU-Verpackungsgesetz sorgt in Landwirtschaftssektor für Furore Ein neuer Vorschlag für ein EU-Verpackungsgesetz hat in der EU-Lebensmittelindustrie große Besorgnis ausgelöst
2 December 202230 November 2022 Electrochaea Joins New European Cleantech Scale-Up Coalition, Supported by Breakthrough Energy and Kadri Simson The coalition members are companies scaling and industrialising technologies whose products and services range from decarbonising industry and energy with renewable hydrogen to producing scalable low-carbon cement; from electrifying transport to recycling materials and batteries
1 December 202229 November 2022 NGO, biofuel industry clash over vegan food from ethanol Non-governmental organisation Transport and Environment (T&E) and the ethanol industry have clashed over the latter’s increasing interest in producing vegan food in addition to biofuel, which aims to end the long-standing “food versus fuel” argument
22 November 202217 November 2022 In focus: Renewable hydrogen to decarbonise the EU’s energy system With an accelerated deployment, the share of hydrogen in the EU’s energy mix could be as much as 13-20% in 2050
15 November 202210 November 2022 Bioeconomy strategies in EU regions. Where are we? Research shows there's a growing number of regional bioeconomy strategies following the launch of the revised EU Bioeconomy strategy in 2018
10 November 20227 November 2022 Burning or recycling? EU weighs options on used tyres Draft EU rules could see millions of tyres shipped outside of Europe for dumping or incineration, recyclers warn
9 November 20223 November 2022 Finland to likely reject Brussels’ biodiversity strategy Finland may vote against the Biodiversity Strategy tabled by the Commission, said Prime Minister Sanna Marin after the parliament committee opposed Brussels’ involvement in the country’s forest policy
Waldpolitik: Finnland könnte EU-Biodiversitätsstrategie blockieren Finnland wird möglicherweise gegen die von der Kommission vorgelegte Biodiversitätsstrategie stimmen, da diese als Einmischung Brüssels in die Waldpolitik des Landes wahrgenommen wird
3 November 202231 October 2022 Biorefineries – the engine of the bio-based economy The European Union is investing billions of euros in biorefineries that can develop products based on organic materials and help decrease the bloc’s reliance on oil and gas
27 October 202231 October 2022 Only four weeks left for your abstract submission: Cellulose Fibres Conference 2023 8–9 March 2023 – hybrid event (on site and online), Cologne (Germany)
EU report flags ‘crucial role’ of bioeconomy for energy and food security With Russia’s war in Ukraine, the European Commission is rediscovering the virtues of bioeconomy for the EU’s energy independence and food security. But it also acknowledges that trade-offs need to be addressed in order to avoid harming the environment
26 October 202225 October 2022 ‘Biomass availability gap’ looms large over EU’s green bioeconomy "Studies suggest that the gap between the potential demand for biomass and its sustainable supply can be as big as 40-70%" by 2050 depending on the scenarios, said to John Bell
17 October 202212 October 2022 EU Commission presents the findings of the EU Bioeconomy Strategy Progress Report The high-level conference ‘The Bioeconomy – Enabling the European Green Deal in Challenging Times’ is taking place today in the Charlemagne building in Brussels
10 October 20225 October 2022 Transition to climate neutrality needs accurate accounting for biogenic carbon The Product Environmental Footprint method could become the EU’s guiding approach for environmental impact assessment; to be fit for purpose, it should appraise the carbon footprint of bio-based products
5 October 202228 September 2022 As much plastic as people by weight? Legislating a more sustainable future The Organisation for Economic Co-operation Development’s latest annual Global Plastics Outlook reports around 40% of global plastic waste as packaging, but just 9% of the plastic waste is recycled
30 September 202226 September 2022 Cefic’s counterproposal to assess the carbon footprint of bio-based products A cradle-to-gate life-cycle analysis using the PEF methodology does not give credit to biomass-derived products where CO2 was removed from the atmosphere during photosynthesis and plant growth
29 September 202226 September 2022 Transition to climate neutrality needs accurate accounting for biogenic carbon The Product Environmental Footprint method could become the EU’s guiding approach for environmental impact assessment; to be fit for purpose, it should appraise the carbon footprint of bio-based products
23 September 202220 September 2022 European Parliament backs 45% renewable energy goal for 2030 If this new objective is confirmed by EU member states in upcoming talks with Parliament later this year, the EU will have to achieve a 45% share of renewables in its overall energy mix by 2030
EU-Parlament stellt sich hinter 45%-Ziel an Erneuerbaren bis 2030 Wenn dieses Ziel von den EU-Mitgliedstaaten in den anstehenden Gesprächen mit dem Parlament noch dieses Jahr bestätigt wird, muss die EU bis 2030 einen Anteil von 45 Prozent erneuerbarer Energien an ihrem gesamten Energiemix erreichen
2 September 202230 August 2022 Warum Waldbiomasse nicht zu den „erneuerbaren“ Energien gezählt werden darf Der Umweltausschuss sieht vor, dass die Verbrennung sekundärer Biomasse weiterhin als erneuerbare Energie im Rahmen der Richtlinie angerechnet werden kann und damit Subventionen erhält
Why forest biomass must not be counted as ‘renewable’ energy The environment committee amendment still allows burning secondary biomass materials, like sawdust and bark from sawmills, to qualify as renewable energy under the RED and receive subsidies
17 August 202215 August 2022 Asahi Kasei joins European Bioplastics Asahi Kasei joined European Bioplastics (EUBP), an association of companies involved in bioplastics, in June 2022
11 August 20228 August 2022 German ministers agree on final CAP plan, split on green rule suspension German federal and state agriculture ministers have likely cleared the way for the implementation of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) at the country level, but remain divided on easing environmental requirements
Bund und Länder finalisieren EU-Agrarreform, keine Einigung über Lockerungen Die Agrarminister:innen von Bund und Ländern haben aller Voraussicht nach den Weg für die Genehmigung des deutschen Strategieplans zur Umsetzung der EU-Agrarreform freigemacht. Gespalten sind die Ressortchefs aber darüber, Umweltauflagen zu lockern
9 August 20224 August 2022 European project on increased use of recycled plastics in electronics has started By using (in principle) recycled plastics from electrical and electronic waste (WEEE), the INCREACE project will tackle areas where the use of recycled plastics is marginal today
Europäisches Projekt zur verstärkten Verwendung von recycelten Kunststoffen in Elektronik-Produkten gestartet Mit dem Einsatz der Kunststoffe aus EE-Altgeräten (WEEE) werden im INCREACE-Projekt Bereiche adressiert, in denen der Gebrauch recycelter Kunststoff- Materialien heute noch marginal ist
3 August 202229 July 2022 Konsument*innen sagen „ja“ zur Kreislaufwirtschaft Markenhersteller und Einzelhändler stehen gleich doppelt unter Zugzwang, denn während der Gesetzgeber inzwischen Druck macht, wollen auch immer mehr Kund*innen weg von der Wegwerfgesellschaft
28 July 202221 July 2022 Renewable & CCU fuels: an alternative to gas dependency available here & now in Europe Captured CO2 combined with renewable hydrogen leads to renewable fuels that contribute to defossilising emissions and enable the uptake of clean energy across all sectors
25 July 202225 July 2022 ReFuel EU – the feedstock challenge With the Fit-for-55 package, the European Commission has set an ambitious goal in the direction of climate protection and to meet the target of “net zero” CO2 emissions in 2050
22 July 202219 July 2022 Recyclateinsatzquoten: Der Teufel steckt im Detail Die Diskussion über Recyclateinsatzquoten dauert sowohl in Deutschland als auch innerhalb der Europäischen Union an
Fit for 55: Parliament pushes for greener aviation fuels However, MEPs excluded feed and food crop-based fuels, and those derived from palm oil, soy-derived materials and soap stock, because they do not align with the proposed sustainability criteria
21 July 202218 July 2022 Innovation Fund: EU invests €1.8 billion in clean tech projects* The selected projects are located in Bulgaria, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland and Sweden
Indigenous Peoples’ message gets through in EU corridors of power The draft Regulation on deforestation-free products was a landmark in the fight against deforestation
19 July 202214 July 2022 S&Ds: By labelling gas and nuclear as sustainable in taxonomy, the conservatives have shamefully betrayed EU climate ambitions Including gas and nuclear among taxonomy-compliant economic activities remains the wrong political message, both from an environmental and economic prospective
18 July 202213 July 2022 Recycling kann Nachfrage nach Verpackungen nicht vollständig decken Im vergangenen Jahrzehnt hat das Aufkommen von Verpackungsabfällen ein Rekordniveau erreicht: Laut Europäischer Kommission lag es 2017 mit durchschnittlich 173 kg pro Kopf so hoch wie nie zuvor
Recycling cannot meet 100% of demand for packaging, EU official cautions The generation of waste from packaging has reached record levels in the past decade, with an average of 173 kg per capita in 2017, the highest level ever, according to the European Commission
15 July 202212 July 2022 FEDIOL releases environmental footprint study Twenty-eight production sites from ten different FEDIOL companies participated in the study by collecting data and contributing to the design of the sector’s category rules
14 July 202213 July 2022 Fit for 55: The EU’s plan for a green transition Fit for 55 refers to the EU’s target of reducing net greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55% by 2030. The proposed package aims to bring EU legislation in line with the 2030 goal
„Fit für 55“: Der EU-Plan für den grünen Wandel „Fit für 55“ bezieht sich auf das Ziel der EU, die Netto-Treibhausgasemissionen bis 2030 um mindestens 55% zu senken. Das vorgeschlagene Paket zielt darauf ab, die EU-Rechtsvorschriften mit dem Ziel für 2030 in Einklang zu bringen
13 July 202213 July 2022 Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), net-zero, ISO 14040, Carbon Footprint, non-financial reporting, net-zero emission, Taxonomy, Product Environmental Footprint (PEF) – what does that all mean for you and your company? Sustainability is a key discussion in industry and policy. nova-Institute invites you to our nova-session on “LCA in science and policy”.
Green light for Sunfire Sunfire is to receive grant funding for industrializing its hydrogen technologies. The electrolysis specialist is one of the first companies to be granted an early start to measure.
Grünes Licht für Sunfire Sunfire kann als eines der ersten Unternehmen eine Förderung für die Skalierung seiner Wasserstoff-Technologien erhalten